Ongoing Projects
Vietnam Visit 2026
On Oct 17/18th, 2026, Dr. Forster will join RAB Radiologists for an Outreach visit to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The topic will be MSK Radiology, and will include Hands-on US sessions.
Pacific Symposium
The Pacific Symposium, held annually in Fiji, is a joint venture between UBC RGOP and Radiology Across Borders (RAB), in collaboration with our Fijian radiology colleagues. The event brings together clinicians, radiologists, technologists, and trainees for interactive medical imaging lectures and hands-on workshops held over multiple days. The next Pacific Symposium will be in October 2026 on the topic of Emergency Radiology!
Fiji Case Review Rounds Project
This is a joint project between our Fijian radiology colleagues and the RGOP radiology residents born from the Pacific Symposium. The objective is to share lectures and interesting cases between the two groups, to strengthen both program’s residency training, and provide a safe resident-led space to practice taking cases, learn from mistakes, and to serve as “consultants” for each other. Beyond the immediate learning potential, the project strengthens the longitudinal relationship between our two countries and serves as a launchpad for future collaboration and resident-led initiatives.
ICRF Physics Cases
Have you encountered physics-related artifacts in your imaging studies while reporting? Please consider submitting cases and contributing to the International Certificate in Radiology Fundamentals (ICRF) initiatives.
The ICRF is an innovative, one-year online certificate program created by Radiology Across Borders (RAB) in collaboration with the University of British Columbia Radiology Global Outreach Program (RGOP). The course is tailored for clinicians, radiographers, and sonographers alike internationally by teaching the core principles of radiology to improve healthcare.
As part of the course design/delivery team, we are looking to build a teaching archive of real-world radiology artifacts for the physics module of the ICRF program. This module covers the fundamentals necessary to understand how medical imaging equipment operates, including key topics of radiation physics & properties, interaction with matter, different imaging modalities, and safety & protection.
Please consider submitting any ANONYMIZED CASES that:
- Clearly demonstrate a specific physics principle from any of the different imaging modalities
- Include representative images with brief clinical context
- Optional: highlight a clear teaching “take-home” point
Cases do not need to be rare or complex. Our emphasis is on clarity and educational value. Some examples: beam hardening artifact, motion artifact, metal artifact, ring artifact, partial volume artifact, and so on!
Please submit cases to the following link: https://forms.gle/ryyT6tJXMAcsno1d9
Thank you for your time and your contribution to our educational and humanitarian initiatives to improve healthcare internationally.
Past Events
UBC Radiology Grand Rounds, April 1, 2026
Drs. Siobhan Leir, Bryan Ng, and Tania Saha gave a UBC Department of Radiology Grand Rounds presentation on the role of radiology in global health and an update on the activities of the UBC RGOP. The presentation included a particular focus on the 2025 Pacific Symposium in Fiji.
The presentation, along with prior RGOP Grand Rounds talks, can be viewed at the following link: https://radiology.med.ubc.ca/news-events/grand-rounds/
Pacific Symposium, 2025
The 2025 Pacific Symposium was held over two days at the Fiji National University, Pasifika Campus, in Suva, Fiji, bringing together registrars, radiologists, and sonographers from across the Pacific region. The program featured expert-led teaching sessions in pediatric imaging and hands-on ultrasound workshops, providing participants with practical, supervised scanning experience that many would otherwise have limited access to. UBC resident presenters — Drs. Siobhan Leir, Bryan Ng, and Tania Saha — attended with the generous support of the UBC Radiology Residency Program, contributing to a conference rooted in the belief that geography should not determine the quality of training a clinician receives.
UBC Radiology Grand Rounds, January 29, 2025
Drs. Dennis Dimond, Pierre Boerkoel, and Kieran Lacey presented on global outreach in radiology, RGOP, and their recent experiences lecturing at the Jakarta 2023 and Fiji 2024 Symposia.
Pacific Symposium, 2024
The 2024 Pacific Symposium was hosted at the Fiji National University, Pasifika Campus, in Suva, from October 28th-29th. It was the first meeting to welcome attendees from more remote islands, as well as UBC resident presenters (Drs. Pierre Boerkoel and Dennis Dimond), who were able to attend with generous support from the UBC Radiology Residency Program.
Pacific Symposium, 2023
During the inaugural event in 2023, over 25 medical experts from Fiji and other Pacific Island Nations participated in the two-day event, which included lectures and ultrasound workshops.
On-Site Visits
RAB/UBC/MUN Jakarta site visit, 2023
The visit was led by Dr. Bruce Forster from UBC and Dr. Salman Ansari from Sydney, Australia. For the first time, a Radiology Resident who had done extensive prior work with RAB, Dr. Kieran Lacey, attended and gave excellent lectures. He also co-ordinated an extensive evaluation system.
This was a two-day event, attended by over 150 radiologists from all over Indonesia. The program included lectures, hands-on ultrasound sessions, and interactive cases, providing educational material and skills on an MSK (musculoskeletal) radiology practice.
RAB/UBC Vietnam site visit, 2019
The symposium was led by Drs. Tanya Martin and Pete Tonseth from UBC, as well as Dr. Greg Briggs, Dr. Nick Trost, and sonographer Jackie Spurway from Australia. The symposium provided a comprehensive overview of radiology in an interactive format.
The visit took place in September 2019, in Hanoi and was conducted by Dr. Siu and Dr. Tonseth as a collaboration between Radiology Across Borders (RAB) and UBC Radiology.
RAB/UBC Cambodia site visit, 2019
The visit was conducted by Dr. Bruce Forster and Dr. Salman Ansari from Sydney, Australia as a collaboration between Radiology Across Borders (RAB) and UBC Radiology. The visit involved a two day course in Phnom Penh with approximately 60 Radiologists attending. The course included lectures and hands-on ultrasound education.
